Amory

INTRODUCTION

21 Plaintiffs are a group of artists and art buyers who either consigned their artwork or 22 purchased artwork from defendant, a former gallerist, allegedly renowned, with various 23 galleries in San Francisco. They allege that he misappropriated the proceeds from the sale or 24 purchase of artwork entrusted to him for his own personal gain, abruptly closed all of his 25 galleries after exhausting a Ponzi scheme to defraud them, and fled to Oregon with their 26 property, which he held in trust, as a fiduciary. Plaintiffs allege breach of fiduciary duty and 27 violations of RICO. Defendant now moves to dismiss. To the following extent, defendant’s motion is GRANTED. STATEMENT The complaint alleges that plaintiffs are professional artists, their agents and/or managers, or art buyers living in various states, Europe, and Australia (id. at ¶¶ 7–21). According to their complaint, “[d]efendant Justin Giarla is a former art gallery owner who rose to prominence within the art world and then used his renown and influence to carry out a deliberate, systemic, years-long campaign to defraud and steal”…